Mixed-Use Refinance
London

A portfolio investor owned a mixed-use building in South London — four retail units on the ground floor and twelve residential flats on the upper floors. The existing facility was on a short-term rate that was about to revert to a significantly higher variable rate. Two brokers had attempted to refinance but both failed — one couldn't find a lender comfortable with the mixed-use split, the other couldn't get past the investor's complex company structure.

Mixed-use properties sit awkwardly between residential and commercial lending — most lenders specialise in one or the other. The retail units had three tenants on rolling contracts and one vacant unit, which reduced the income coverage. The investor held the property through an LLP with three members, two of whom were non-UK resident, adding compliance complexity.

We identified a specialist lender from our panel who had a specific appetite for mixed-use assets in London. Rather than presenting it as a problem property, we reframed it around the location value — Zone 2 London, strong residential demand, and the vacant retail unit as an upside opportunity. We prepared a full income schedule showing the blended yield across residential and commercial, which demonstrated the property was significantly under-rented. The LLP structure was addressed with enhanced KYC documentation prepared in advance.